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All-inclusive service agreements have their perks:
But how do you know if an all-inclusive service agreement is right for your facility?
There are several factors to consider, including:
At Diagraph, we offer our Premier Service Program to deliver predictable on-going service and maintenance costs even when customers are faced with worst-case scenarios. All repair costs, including parts and labor, are covered by the program. The program package is purchased for a specified number of years at the time of purchasing the equipment. The cost of the program can be paid entirely upfront or can be broken out over a series of months when bundled into an equipment leasing package.
Interested in purchasing Diagraph coding and labeling equipment with Premier Service Program coverage? Speak with a Diagraph representative today by calling 1.800.722.1125 or contacting us through the website.
Our goal at Diagraph is to make maintaining your coding and labeling equipment both proactive and predictable. “Proactive” because we believe that service interventions should always be planned, never a surprise. “Predictable” because we believe that service interventions should be done around your production schedule. When done properly, this helps eliminate equipment downtime, keeping your production running as smoothly as possible.
Over the past 125 years, we have found that our happiest customers are our most well supported customers. We offer a variety of maintenance agreements that allow customers to choose the right level of support they need for their coding and labeling equipment.
Customers with well-staffed maintenance departments often opt for our standard preventive maintenance agreements in which a Diagraph Factory Certified Technician performs recommended service interventions for the equipment. Customers with preventive maintenance agreements also enjoy Diagraph Insider pricing on parts and consumables.
Customers who want a higher level of support with service visits beyond regularly scheduled service intervals opt for a custom maintenance agreement. This helps establish an up-front cost for future maintenance that injects a level of predictability into their maintenance budget. Customers with custom maintenance agreements also enjoy Diagraph Insider pricing on parts and consumables beyond supplies that are already provided for as part of the agreement.
Customers who want total peace-of-mind opt for our all-inclusive maintenance agreement, our Premier Agreement. Our Premier Agreements not only cover routine preventive maintenance but also all repair costs, including parts and labor, in the event that something unexpected happens, whenever it happens, during the coverage of the agreement. This level of support is purchased for a specified number of years at the time of purchasing your Diagraph systems. Your maintenance budget doesn’t get any more predictable than that! The agreement can be paid for upfront or over time if you opt to roll it into a leasing program.
Because we believe that equipment operators and maintenance teams are integral to the long-term performance of coding and labeling equipment, we work customer training programs into all levels of our service agreements. Interested in learning more about how Diagraph can best support your product identification operations? Speak with a Diagraph representative today by calling 1.800.722.1125 or contacting us through the website.
Our customers that realize the most value over the life of their coding and labeling equipment utilize some level of support from our factory-trained field service engineers. We fundamentally believe that service interventions should always be planned, never a surprise. With our flexible service and support options, we put customers in the driver’s seat of deciding when service will be done around their own production schedules.
Through the Predictable Service Support component of our Diagraph Solution Center model, we offer service programs that match the skill level and needs of our customers’ production and maintenance teams, including:
When you work with Diagraph, you’re backed by a nationwide network of factory-trained field service engineers. The Diagraph Predictable Service Support program is just one of the ways we partner with customers to deliver tangible value throughout a long-term relationship. Our technical service teams will ensure you are maximizing the full value of your coding and labeling equipment while always keeping an eye to the future to help you scale up for future capacity and complexity.
Learn more about the other three components of the Diagraph Solution Center:
Thermal Transfer Printhead Technologies in Print and Apply Labeling
By Steve Dods, Automated Labeling Products (ALP) and Thermal Transfer Overprinter (TTO) Products Manager
There are two common types of thermal transfer (TT) printheads in industrial print and apply labeling systems. One version is the Flat Head TT type, which has a relatively parallel contact between the heating elements of the printhead and the ribbon/label. The other is a Near-Edge TT type, which angles the head up to 45 degrees. There are advantages and disadvantages to these two types of technologies, which is why both existing in industrial printing.
Printer Types
OEM industrial print engines, such as SATO and Zebra
Labeling system manufacturer's proprietary printer (VideoJet) and TTO (Thermal Transfer Overprinters)
Life
Typically 5 million lineal inches, with proper cleaning and care
Typically 2.5 million lineal inches, with proper cleaning and care
Price (4" wide)
Around $450 to $700
Around $1000 to $1300
Speed
Up to 16 inches per second
Up to 19.7 inches per second
Consumable Cost (600m Ribbon)
$15 to $20 per roll,
Wax, Wax Resin, or Resin
$23 to $30 per roll,
Wax Resin or Resin only
Material Thickness
Head mount adjustments required
Less or no adjustment required
Near edge TT print heads are optimal for high-speed printing on surfaces that may have some variances, like film webs. They are mainly seen in these applications, where the alternative technology is ink jet or laser. Flat head technology is ideal for longer life, lower consumable cost, and lower overall replacement cost. As with most competing technologies, it comes down to the application requirements. For print and apply applications, the reliable and less expensive selection has been the venerable Flat Head TT print head.
For more information on print and apply applications click here. Or contact us at 800.722.1125.
With the introduction of the Diagraph Solution Center model, we are offering more ways to partner with Diagraph to overdrive operational efficiencies and streamline coding and labeling operations. There are four components to this model, with the first being Diagraph Solution Matching Services.
Since manufacturers are constantly being squeezed to produce more products with fewer people at lower costs, manufacturers are missing many opportunities for improving their operations. This push to do more with less is creating a knowledge and a resource gap that is increasingly difficult to fulfill at the manufacturer level.
To help our customers combat this growing issue, we are introducing what we call Diagraph Solution Matching Services. We will partner with you to conduct a complete site audit at your facility or, for larger customers, your family of facilities to pinpoint opportunities where slight changes in coding operations can provide valuable benefits, including:
Increasing production throughput or simplifying product changeovers often comes down to identifying and eliminating bottlenecks and workarounds that, in most cases, are so engrained in day-to-day operations that workers don’t even know they are doing tasks the hard way. Our product identification sales and service personnel are in and out of manufacturing facilities every day and have become very adept at identifying the most common mistakes manufacturers make when it comes to their coding and labeling operations.
Equipment interventions take production workers away from what should be focused on the most – the product they are producing on the line. This is often caused by mistakes made due to inadequate training or by aging technology that is increasingly declining in performance. We will help you understand how to best set up and operate your coding and labeling equipment for minimal interventions so that you can think more about your own products and less about your equipment.
Mismarked and mislabeled products create big hits to the bottom line. Through our top-to-bottom review, we can help you assess the true cost of scrapping materials or going back and reworking products as well as develop a plan of action that can virtually eliminate these all-too-common mistakes.
You can produce the cleanest and boldest marks on your products, but if they don’t hold up through your own manufacturing processes and every day consumer handling, you can jeopardize not only your own safety and quality processes but also your relationship with retail partners and your consumers. With a wide range of technologies, inks, and ribbons at our disposal, we can help you tackle the toughest of adhesion challenges to come up with a solution that is durable enough for the life of your consumer product.
Diagraph Solution Matching Services are just one way we partner with customers to deliver tangible value throughout a long-term relationship.
Selecting the Right Ribbon
The packaging of your product is extremely important, it is a first impression and we all know how important those are. There is a whole science when it comes to packaging, from the way that the consumers place the packaging in their minds to the appeal that the packaging has on their emotions. As manufacturers we want the packaging to look good, but sometimes that extra shine that the film supplier said would enhance your packaging throws a curveball when it comes to printing important information such as lot numbers, date codes or even pricing.
For example, at Diagraph we sometimes hear from customers that say “your ribbon was working fine until it just stopped working halfway through the roll. What happened with the last 300’ of ribbon?” The reason is usually simple. The ribbon formula has not changed. However, that new batch of film that you received from your film supplier may contain a bit more Silicone or Teflon to prevent the film from sticking on the roll or to make the appearance a tad bit shinier. These are instances when you want to inquire about the foil formula with your supplier.
The good news is that you have options. In fact, Diagraph offers many different formulations of Norwood ribbon to allow us to offer solutions for most films. The coating and chemical make-up of the film is what drives the ribbon formulation. We offer wax, wax/resin, and resin ribbons and within each of these 3 categories we offer a number of formulas and colors. If you have a new film or want to know what formulation will be the best option for your film, our Norwood Ribbon experts offer free film testing.
As if that wasn’t enough complexity for a simple 5 digit code, there is also the print head type that will determine which formula will work. Thermal transfer has 3 different print head technologies: true, flat and near. The most common of the 3 are near and flat and they are defined by the angle that the print head has relative to the actual substrate. Different formulas of ribbon are designed for the different print head technologies. A near edge ribbon cannot be expected to work on a flat edge printer and vice versa.
So next time that the film supplier calls and says “We just got this new coating in and it will make your packaging sparkle and shine” ask for a sample of that film to be sent over to Diagraph to see if that “sparkle and shine” is something that can keep your thermal code sticking. We can help you proactively address any issues to ensure that you have the right ribbon for your new foil.
At Diagraph, we are dedicated to solving your coding and labeling challenges. Diagraph has been assisting customers for over 120 years by improving production line efficiencies with simple, reliable and cost-effective coding and labeling solutions. Contact us to learn more about the Norwood ribbon line. Visit us at www.diagraph.com or contact us at 800.722.1125.
Diagraph continues its long-standing history of innovation in the case coding industry with the introduction of the ResMark 5000 print system. The patented quick disconnect feature which allows for a quick and simple disconnection and replacement of the print head is among the ResMark system’s many features.
Removal and replacement of an inkjet print head may be required if the print head is damaged or improperly functioning, if it needs cleaning or if a new print image with a larger print height requires a larger print head. The quick disconnect feature on the ResMark 5000 system allows this to be done quickly and without mess.
The ResMark 5000 print system utilizes two components: the ink supply module and the print head module. The ink supply module’s quick disconnect coupling isolates the internal ink supply components and tubing and ensures ink will not leak out when not coupled with the print head. To install the print head, the ink supply module coupling is inserted into the print head with the print head horizontally oriented. Once the ink supply module is fully inserted, the print head module is rotated 90° to a fully upright position. This action not only fully seals the connection ensuring no ink leaks out between the two modules, it also opens the ink supply tubing allowing ink to flow from the ink supply module to the print head and back. This entire process of removal and replacement can be conducted while the system is still fully powered. No other print systems allow for quicker serviceability than the ResMark 5000.
For more information regarding the ResMark 5000 piezo inkjet system, refer to Diagraph’s website at the link below:
https://www.diagraph.com/products/casecoding/highresolutioninkjetprinter/resmark5000